Posts filed in Spring Tablescape

Design and Lifestyle

The Featured Table: A Spring Garden Table with Claudia Fabiana

There are tablescapes that stop you mid-scroll. This is one of them.

When Claudia Fabiana set her outdoor table using August Table’s Garden napkins and tablecloth in yellow and gray, she created something that feels less like a styled moment and more like a memory waiting to happen. Sunlight pooling on white linens. Amber glasses catching the afternoon light. Daisies spilling from a white ceramic pitcher. Artichokes and lemons tumbling across the center of the table like a still life that wandered in from the garden.

It is, simply put, everything we believe a table can be.

Letting the Garden Come to the Table

What makes this setting so special is how effortlessly it blurs the line between the table and the world just beyond it. Claudia used what was growing and blooming around her — nasturtiums tucked onto each plate, trailing yellow blooms woven into the centerpiece, a generous bunch of daisies that feel gathered rather than arranged. Nothing here looks purchased for the occasion. It looks lived.

This is one of the most beautiful principles of a well-set table: nature is always your best stylist. A few lemons halved and placed casually alongside artichokes creates a centerpiece that is as fragrant as it is visual. A single bright nasturtium on a white plate is more arresting than any formal garnish could be.

The Details That Make It Sing

The layering in this table is masterful in its simplicity. The August Table Garden tablecloth and napkins anchor everything with their yellow and gray botanical print — the palette is the palette of the season itself. Against that, Claudia chose:

Ruffle-edged burlap chargers that add warmth and texture without competing with the print. White beaded charger plates that feel fresh and airy. Amber glassware that echoes the yellow in the napkins and flowers, bringing the whole color story together. Bamboo-handled flatware that lends a natural, organic quality to the table. A white ceramic pitcher serving double duty as a vase — one of the most charming and practical styling tricks there is.

Each choice is considered, yet nothing feels fussy. That balance is the hallmark of truly beautiful tablescaping.

A Table Made for Lingering

This is an outdoor table, set on a brick patio, with the kind of casual ease that invites people to pull up a chair and stay a while. It is the table you set for a long Sunday lunch, for lemonade in the afternoon, for dinner that stretches past golden hour into the soft evening light. It is generous and warm and entirely without pretension.

That is what we are always chasing at August Table. Not perfection, but presence. Not a table that impresses, but a table that welcomes.

How to Recreate This Look

If this table is calling to you, here is how to bring it to life:

Start with the August Table Garden tablecloth and napkins in yellow and gray. They do a great deal of the work for you — the print is layered and botanical, which means you can keep everything else quite simple.

Add texture through your chargers and flatware. Burlap, rattan, bamboo, and woven materials all complement a garden-inspired print beautifully.

Build your centerpiece from whatever is growing. Artichokes make extraordinary table decor. So do lemons, branches, herbs, and garden flowers. Use a pitcher, a crock, or a simple jar rather than a formal vase.

Let a single bloom do the work on each plate. One nasturtium, one sprig of something fragrant, one small flower from the yard. It takes thirty seconds and transforms the entire setting.

Finally, choose glassware that echoes your color story. Amber, green, or yellow glass will warm up a yellow-toned table beautifully.

Thank You, Claudia

We are so grateful to Claudia Fabiana for sharing this beautiful table with us. She has created something that perfectly captures the spirit of the season — and the spirit of what August Table is always trying to inspire. A slower pace. A more beautiful table. A gathering worth savoring.

We hope it inspires you to pull out your linens, step into the garden, and set a table this spring.

With warmth,
Carrie

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The Art of Spring Tablescaping

Photo by: Claudia Reese

The beautiful spring came, and when nature resumes her loveliness, the human soul is apt to revive also. ~ Harriet Ann Jacobs

Spring sometimes comes with a shock of hope.

When winter lasts and lingers, sometimes we forget there is even such a thing as spring. We know, of course, the season exists–intellectually speaking. But sometimes our hearts forget.

When spring comes, it brings in all kinds and colors of joy. It’s reflected in the art we create, the food we make, and the way we add its life and hues to our homes–which is an art form all on its own.

Maybe we remember how much our grandmother loved lilacs, and we may stop and appreciate their beauty in her honor and bring in cuttings for the table.

Because the spring of the now ties into the seasons of the past, and it makes us happy to incorporate the memories of the bygone years. So if it isn’t spring for you until your garden is covered in poppies, then bring on the poppies!

And take your own sacred version of the season and bring it to your table for a gorgeous, personal space. 

Here are some of our favorite tips.

Florals

Flowers aren’t everything when it comes to spring tablescaping, but it’s they’re certainly a great place to start.

When you pick the color scheme of your floral design, then you know what you need to do to tie in the rest of the table. Many people choose tableware that’s neutral and then use napkins to mirror the natural colors of the centerpiece.

Consider choosing long, lower containers for the flower so your guests can still see each other. Or, you could use multiple smaller vases filled with loose bouquets and spaced in between the sightline.

Also, make sure the table isn’t so crowded that your friends can’t eat comfortably. If the plates are crowded, you may have overdone it and need to pull back on fashion in favor of function.

A Decorative Gift

A lovely touch for your guests is to place a small offering on their plate. 

You can use a rustic or silvery charger topped with a large plate and then a smaller one on top, which is often the layered plating chosen for spring, and then add a small decorative present for your guests on the smallest plate. 

For instance, you could place a pretty woven nest on each place setting filled with a trio of foil-wrapped or other egg-shaped treats. Or, place a large chocolate egg in an egg cup. You can also use the nest or cup as a placeholder, adding a pretty, personalized paper nameplate.

Fresh Farmhouse

A container with a small bouquet at each place is a beautiful touch. You could also choose a living plant, turning your table into a ”host of golden daffodils” or another profusion of blooms that your guests can take home with them.

Go Local and In Season

What does spring look like where you live? The happiest blossoms in your region can often be the best choice for your tablescape. But don’t be limited by flowers; a centerpiece of greens can be transported on its own. Also, local fruit can be incorporated into your design. 

Shop your local farmers market with an eye to tablescaping. You might find some excellent ideas you’d never considered.

If using fruit, make sure they’re clean in case your guests want to eat those beautiful grapes, peaches–or whatever you’ve chosen–for their dessert.

Glassware

Laura Remmert, the owner of Laura Remmert Events, states that “adding a pop of color with your glassware is both a playful and elegant addition to any spring tablescape. A fun twist on classic black and white—the green accent glass brings a colorful touch to … tabletop design perfectly tying in the natural green in the flowers.” 

Photo by: Claudia Reese

This seems to work particularly well if you’re using white or pale blossoms for your spring tablescape. 

Extend Your Tablescape

Don’t leave your design all clumped together in the middle of the table. Extend your creation with a natural table runner such as greens or a collection of thin branches. You can also use a tablecloth folded lengthwise into thirds. In this case, we prefer organic cotton with natural dyes.

Also, a collection of small white, pastel, or silver candlesticks placed from the center of the table outwards will also extend your design. 

Happy hosting, friends! We hope you’re enjoying this spring season as much as we are.

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